How To Create Degree Completion Plans for FMST Majors Department of Family Studies and Community Development
Printing the Academic Requirements Report Step 1: Go to http://students.towson.edu Step 2: On the right hand side, click on: Step 3: Log into your Online Services Account, then click on Self-Service
Printing the Academic Requirements Report Step 4: Click on Student Center Step 5: Under Academics, click Academic Requirements. Note: It may take up to a minute for the Academic Requirements to process. Step 6: Click on View report as PDF Step 7: Print the document
Printing the Academic Requirements Report Step 7: Print the document Step 8: Find the Student s major and track, found below Program at the top of the Academic Requirements form. Major/Track Found towards the top of the Academic Requirements form
Download the Degree Completion Plan Step 1: Visit the FMST Advising Webpage: http://www.towson.edu/fmst/advising/ Step 2: At the bottom of the webpage, under Four Year Course Plan Documents, Click on the appropriate Degree Completion Plan link to download.
Download the Degree Completion Plan Example: For a student in the Family Science Major, Click on Degree Completion Plan for Family Science. Step 4: Open the Degree Completion Plan template that has been downloaded. Immediately save the document as: LastName-FirstName_TU ID.xlsx Note: The saved document will be emailed from its file location to FMST advising after completion Example: Jane Doe is a Family Science major with a student ID of 0555555
Fill Out Identifiable Information Use the Academic Requirements Document to find basic student information. Major / Track Catalog Year Fill out the information section of the Academic Plan form:
Complete the Core Requirements Section Check off completed core requirements on the degree completion form. This includes eligible classes that have been taken or that are currently in progress (e.g. currently taking or enrolled in for the following semester). Use the Academic Requirements Form to complete this section. The form lists the completion status of each core (see next slide for instructions). The example below shows that a Core 9 course has not been taken and is not in progress (enrolled for the current or next semester).
Complete the Core Requirements Section The Academic Requirements form lists the status of whether each core has been satisfied. Note: The form lists the Core as satisfied if there is a course that is in progress for the current or upcoming semester. Each Core Requirement is identified Satisfied will be listed below the Core if the credit is satisfied. Not Satisfied is listed for credits that have not been satisfied
Enter Transfer Credits Step 1: Calculate the total number of transfer credits by adding the units of each transfer class (Found in the Academic Requirements Form) TR Indicates Transfer Credits Transfer Credits will be documented in 1 st semester of the Degree Completion Plan Number of transfer credits, totaling 13.
Enter Transfer Credits Step 2: Choose the appropriate Semester/Year for the Semester #1 plan (Ex: Fall 2014) Step 3: Enter in transfer credits: Enter the total number of successfully transferred credits in the first row of the Semester #1 section. Choose Other (Course), The total amount of credits that transferred (Units), Transfer Credit (Type), and Transfer (Grade) Example: Jane Doe declared her Family Science Major in Fall 2015 upon arriving at TU, transferring a total of 42 credits in.
Enter Completed and In Progress Courses Taken at Towson University Directions: Enter In Progress and Completed Courses (Note: This usually involves the first two semesters of the student s plan). Helpful Hint: Courses in the academic requirements form lists courses by year and semester, and states their status. IP = In Progress courses. TR = Transferred courses
Calculate the Total Credits Needed to Graduate Regardless of the student s major, he/she must complete 120 credits to graduate. The Academic Requirements form shows how many credits will be fulfilled after the in Progress classes are taken. The Academic Requirements form shows how many credits are needed after the in progress courses are completed. EX: The student will have 97 credits upon completing all courses that are in progress (currently taking or enrolled for the following semester.) To graduate, the student needs an additional 23 credits to meet the minimum of 120 credits.
Estimate the Number of Semesters Needed Before planning courses in the Degree Completion Plan, estimate the number of semesters the student needs in order to graduate. Step 1: Find the number of credits needed to graduate (found on previous slide) Note: This is subject to change due to progress on sequential coursework. Step 2: Divide the credits needed by 15, the average number of credits taken each semester, and round up. This is the number of semesters needed to graduate if the student is taking 15 credits a semester. Note: Do not use this number if there are only a few credits needed in the last semester after previous semesters of 15 credits. You may want to consider having a semester with 18 credits or enroll in a Minimester/Summer course.
Estimate the Number of Semesters Needed Example: 23 credits are needed. 23 / 15 = 1.5 (round up) = 2 Semesters Step 3: Enter the amount of credits used in the Total Credits Earned to Date Section of the Degree Completion Plan.
Complete Major/Track Requirements Section Step 1: Locate the Major/Track Requirements section of the Degree Completion Plan and the corresponding sections of the Academic Requirements Form. Completion status of track electives in the Academic Requirements Form
Estimate the Number of Semesters Needed Step 2: Locate courses (completed, transferred, in progress) on the Academic Requirements Report that are major and track requirements. Step 3: Locate courses (completed, transferred, in progress) that satisfy requirements for track specific electives. courses (transferred, completed, or in progress) that are major and track requirements. Step 4: Check off the courses that satisfy Major and Track Requirements (transferred, completed or in progress) courses (transferred, completed, or in progress) that are major and track requirements.
Plan Sequential Courses Sequential courses must be planned in backward sequence, starting with the last semester the student will be enrolled in courses. Refer to the Sequential Courses guide to determine which order the sequential courses must be scheduled in (the illustration). The following slides have general guidelines for the ideal scheduling of sequential courses.
Plan Sequential Courses Step 1: Find the last semester a student will be enrolled in class (using the estimated number of semesters he/she will be enrolled in classes) Step 2: Schedule sequential courses for the last semester, followed by the second-to-last, etc. NOTE: The following slides have general guidelines for the ideal scheduling of sequential courses for both majors. Example: The student has an estimated graduation of Spring 2016, so the last two courses in sequence, FMST 497 and FMST 490 would tentatively be scheduled.
Sequential Courses: Family and Human Services Writing and Research FMST 101 Introduction to Family Studies or FMST 102 Honors Introduction to Family Studies Basic Statistics: Students may choose from MATH 231, MATH 237, ECON 205* or PSYC 212 FMST 302 Theories of Family Functioning (May take STATs in same semester) FMST 485 Writing and Research Methods in Family Studies FMST 490 Family and Human Services Capstone
Sequential Courses: Family and Human Services Service Learning and Internship FMST 101 Introduction to Family Studies or FMST 102 Honors Introduction to Family Studies FMST 297 Preparing Human Service Workers (Can take in same semester as FMST 387) FMST 387 Community Services for Families (3) (Can take in same semester as FMST 297) Must have completed 21 credits of FMST courses before FMST 397 (Can include FMST 297 & FMST 387) FMST 397 Internship (3)
Family and Human Services Major Human Services & Leadership in the Nonprofit Sector Track The Ideal scheduling of sequential courses in sequence from the student s last semester to the first semester
Family and Human Services Major Services to Children and Youth & Introduction to the Child Life The Ideal scheduling of sequential courses in sequence, from the student s last semester to the first semester
Sequential Courses: Family Science Writing and Research FMST 101 Introduction to Family Studies or FMST 102 Honors Introduction to Family Studies Basic Statistics: Students may choose from MATH 231, MATH 237, ECON 205* or PSYC 212 FMST 302 Theories of Family Functioning (May take STATs in same semester) FMST 485 Writing and Research Methods in Family Studies FMST 495 Advanced Research Methods
Family Science Major The Ideal scheduling of sequential courses in sequence, from the student s last semester to the first semester
Completing the Plan Step 1: Schedule Major Pre-requisite Courses. Schedule them as early as possible for the student. Step 2: Schedule courses that fulfill CORE, Major and Track Requirements. It is ideal to have 300 level and higher courses scheduled toward the last three semesters. Information about scheduling Track electives is featured on the next slide.
Completing the Plan Track electives: Select FMST Electives, type the number of units for the course, and select Track Elective. Track Requirements that have more than one option, select Track Specific under Course, type in the number of units, and Select Track Requirement. Human Services Track: FMST 350 or FMST 430 Intro to the Child Life Track: OCTH 213 or PSYC 431 An example of planning track electives and requirements (with options)
You have completed the Degree Progress Plan You have completed the Degree Progress Plan! E-mail the plan: To: FMSTadvising@towson.edu Subject Line: Your Advisor s Name